Although there are numerous methods for the quantitative determination of glucose in biological fluids, there is a need for a simple, rapid, highly sensitive, accurate and reproducible means which can be easily miniaturized, inexpensively produced, and which is inexpensive to use. Such means would be especially useful, convenient and less painful to the patient when screening for and monitoring diabetes in the human if only a few drops of blood were required for a reliable test. The usefulness of such means would be enhanced if it had sufficient sensitivity and accuracy to be applied to the quantitative determination of glucose concentrations in urine, which generally are far lower than in the blood. In addition, a simple, rapid, economical and convenient means which can be applied to the on-site monitoring of glucose concentrations during food processing and in agricultural products is needed.
For the foregoing reasons there is a need for a device for quantitative assay of glucose in biological and other fluids which is simple to use, delivers the assay rapidly, is highly sensitive, accurate and reproducible, and which can be easily miniaturized, inexpensively produced and inexpensively used.